Carbamazepine 10,11-epoxide is an active metabolite of the anticonvulsant carbamazepine.1,2 It is formed from carbamazepine by the cytochrome P450 (CYP) isoforms CYP3A4 and CYP2C8 in microsomes prepared from HepG2 cells expressing CYP3A4 or CYP2C8, respectively.1 Carbamazepine 10,11-epoxide has anticonvulsant activity against maximal electroshock-induced seizures in mice.2 It has been found in wastewater effluent.3
1.Kerr, B.M., Thummel, K.E., Wurden, C.J., et al.Human liver carbamazepine metabolism. Role of CYP3A4 and CYP2C8 in 10,11-epoxide formationBiochem. Pharmacol.47(11)1969-1979(1994) 2.Bourgeois, B.F., and Wad, N.Individual and combined antiepileptic and neurotoxic activity of carbamazepine and carbamazepine-10,11-epoxide in miceJ. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther.231(2)411-415(1984) 3.Miao, X.-S., Yang, J.-J., and Metcalfe, C.D.Carbamazepine and its metabolites in wastewater and in biosolids in a municipal wastewater treatment plantEnviron. Sci. Technol.39(19)7469-7475(2005)